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Forest on the Ochoco National Forest. Photo by George Wuerthner Hurray for Central Oregon Land Watch and Oregon Wild for suing the Ochoco National Forest over its proposed Black Mountain Vegetation Management Project near Big Prairie. As is typical of the Forest Service today, they use euphemisms to conceal what they always have been…
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https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/articles/entry/national-parks-were-one-of-americas-greatest-ideas.-lets-expand-on-that/ National Parks Were One of America’s Greatest Ideas. Let’s Expand on That. To fully protect the values for which they were established, we need to add new national parks and expand many existing ones. GEORGE WUERTHNER AND MICHAEL KELLETT April 23, 2020 One of United States’ greatest contributions to the global marketplace…
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An ineffective road closure–a plastic sign on the Custer Gallatin NF saying the road is “closed” Photo by George Wuerthner I recently had a representative of one of the “conservation groups” in the Greater Yellowstone area tell me that they supported logging/thinning on the Custer Gallatin National Forest because the agency was mostly accessing the…
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The Washington Post recently published an article that repeated the old and flawed idea that ranching will “protect” the land and suggesting conservation easements are the solution to sprawl. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/expanding-efforts-to-keep-cows-over-condos-are-protecting-land-across-the-west/2020/04/10/96ec2f80-79c6-11ea-9bee-c5bf9d2e3288_story. If championing cows or hayfields is your conservation policy, one must rethink the strategy. Keep in mind that nearly all the development found along the…
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“Restoration” management on the Deschutes National Forest. Photo by George Wuerthner You can’t solve a problem if you don’t identify it correctly. When it comes to wildfire safety, the timber industry, the Forest Service, and many collaboratives are selling Snake Oil to the public. The problem for people is not with the forest—the problem…
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Note: I am posting this on behalf of the Friends of the Clearwater. The Forest Service is currently accepting public comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the forest plan revision on the Nez Perce and Clearwater National Forests. The comment deadline is April 20. The National Forest Management Act (1976) mandates all…
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Clearcuts in Montana The Forest Service is once again demonstrating its Industrial Forestry bias with its proposal to treat 3,790 acres by Cruzane Mountain in the Lolo National Forest. An acre is approximately the size of one football field. The District Ranger suggests that treatments will “address insect and disease impacts and improve forest health…
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In recent weeks, misinformed Douglas County politicians have expressed opposition to the 500,000 acre Crater Lake Wilderness proposal based on the misguided belief that wilderness designation poses a wildfire threat. They argue that “active management,” meaning logging, can preclude or prevent such blazes. But this demonstrates a fundamental failure to understand fire ecology. Just as…
Author
George Wuerthner is an ecologist and writer who has published 38 books on various topics related to environmental and natural history. He has visited over 400 designated wilderness areas and over 200 national park units.